


You’ll be the Sun, I’ll be the Waves

by captnaynay



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Boss Steve Rogers, Bottom Bucky Barnes, Bucky Barnes Feels, Bucky is a brat, Eventual Smut, F/F, F/M, First Meetings, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Friends to Lovers, Gay, Light BDSM, M/M, Personal Assistant Bucky Barnes, Post-Serum Steve Rogers, Praise Kink, Protective Steve Rogers, SO GAY, Top Steve Rogers, eventual angst, idk how any of this will go
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-16
Updated: 2019-07-18
Packaged: 2020-03-06 06:51:45
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,741
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18845875
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/captnaynay/pseuds/captnaynay
Summary: Bucky Barnes is out of a job and his savings won’t cut it anymore. His application has been accepted to the prestigious SHIELD Inc., which he thinks he’s going to be working under Fury but, later finds out he’ll be the personal assistant to Steve Rogers.





	1. Whatever It Takes

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! This is my first fic and i’m scared. I would love any feedback in the comments, good or bad. Thank you for reading <3 
> 
>  
> 
> Thank you to my friends who read this chapter and hyped me up/helped edit it!

Bucky's feet shuffle through the dirty snow and slush on the Brooklyn streets. His face is burning, turning his cheeks and nose a vibrant pink from the winter chill, which only makes him walk faster. He’s about two blocks away from the building that is either going to welcome him with a job or turn him away. Bucky really needs this job. His rent is almost due and the savings he has in his bank account aren’t going to cover it anymore. He’s been having a hard time finding any job lately, so if it meant having to suck it up and be someone’s personal assistant, he will. 

They should at least give him a complementary “I’m sorry you had to walk all this way in the freezing weather, but good luck on finding a job!” basket, if they turned him down, Bucky thinks to himself miserably. 

Shoving his hands deeper in his pockets, he waits for the light to change from a red hand, to a white stick figure signaling he was allowed to cross the street. God, he wishes he would have just called an Uber. His apartment is small but homey, and most importantly, warm. It was about seven blocks away from his potential job and he thinks it honestly would’ve been worth wasting the twenty or so dollars to get there. 

“Can't really assist much if I’m a fuckin’ popsicle before I even get there,” Bucky says out loud. The man standing beside him with a steaming cup of coffee eyeballs him. Bucky gives him a tight-lipped smile and the man uncomfortably looks away. 

He feels the tears stinging in his eyes and his teeth are ten seconds away from chattering. He glares at the street light, thinking about ways to destroy the evil little LEDs inside for making him stand here so long. After the seemingly endless wait, the signal changes and he begins crossing the road to the looming building ahead. 

When the stainless-steel elevator doors open to floor 34, Bucky's heart jumps, and feels his eyes widen. SHIELD Inc. is just about as glamourous in the inside as Bucky thought it would be. The white marble floors reflect the fluorescent hue of the lights that are masterfully placed within the vaulted ceiling above. Slate grey chairs have been placed tastefully around a frosted glass coffee table to the right of him. Bucky has no doubt that those chairs cost more than his entire outfit. The back wall is entirely made out of glass with a breathtaking view of the city. Bucky takes in a deep breath, ran his hand through his hair to slick it back into place, and makes his way to the lone reception desk. He only feels about five times more nervous than he did while walking here. 

‘It’s fine, everything’s fine,’ he’s repeating in his head like a broken record.

Sitting behind the modern desk was a sharp looking woman, typing away at whatever it was she was working on. The brunette looks up from the modern computer as Bucky approaches and she gives him a warm smile. 

“Good afternoon, how may I help you today?” Her voice is sweet and kind but Bucky doesn’t seem to notice. He’s too busy trying to convince himself that everything is going to go smoothly. 

“Hello, I have an interview set up with Nicholas Fury at two P.M.” He tells her, voice filling with confidence, even though every second being inside this place is making him feel less like he belongs. It’s not that he thinks he can’t blend in here, because he can if he really tries. It’s just that he doesn’t think this Fury guy is even gonna give him a chance to prove it. He’s used to his welcoming cubicle filled with photos of friends and family; used to the banter that carried on throughout his day at his previous job, Valkyrion, and is worried his playful personality isn’t gonna be what they are looking for with such a prestigious company. 

The woman nods and looks back to her screen and begins to type away again. While waiting, Bucky notices that the nameplate on her desk reads, Maria and she has a cute little succulent next to a small grey lamp. He wonders how long a succulent would last in his care. Even if they need hardly any water and knowledge of plants in general, Bucky is confident that his very own stubby plant would surely die soon after. He mentally notes to stop by a local florist and pick one up later.

After a minute or so passes, she looks back up to Bucky and tells him to take a seat in one of the contemporary grey chairs across from her. 

“Mr. Fury has been notified of your arrival, so just make yourself comfortable. His assistant will be down shortly to come grab you,” Maria told him. Bucky smiles and thanks her, and walks over to the plush chairs to take a seat. He shrugs out of his heavy wool coat and places it on the armrest of the suspiciously comfortable chair. He fiddles with the black tie around his neck, and smooths out the navy-blue blazer that fits him like a glove. 

‘I can do this. I have to,’ Bucky thinks to himself, with more than a normal amount of anxiety suffocating his mind. 

Yes, there were some qualifications he doesn’t have for this job, but he’s a quick and eager learner. He picks up on skills at a fast rate and made damn sure he exceeded at them. 

It wasn’t long before he hears heels clicking against the cold marble floor approaching him. Bucky looks up at the young woman and stood. 

“James Barnes?” She asked him, eyeing him up in down. Not in a way as if to check him out, but as if she were trying to gauge his motives, as if he has any other than this interview. Bucky clears his throat as he stands up and holds out his hand. 

“Yes, that would be me,” Bucky said in a light and friendly tone. 

She reaches out to shake his hand and motions for him to follow. They walk pass Maria, who gave him a thumbs up and small smile, and made their way through the building. Bucky began to feel yet another knot in his stomach form. This had been the first break he’s gotten with interviews in a couple weeks and he doesn’t want to screw it up. He notices right away the stark difference of the work conduct there compared to the old almost carefree office. It wasn’t bad though; it was peaceful with how collected and respectful everyone was. After a short walk, they approached a cherrywood door that was slightly ajar. 

The woman who led him there lightly knocked on the door and poked her vibrant red head inside. 

“Your two o’clock is ready for you, Fury,” she said to the man in the room. Bucky assumes he had given her an unheard okay, as she widens the door to let him step inside. 

Bucky walks into the office and gave a thank you to the woman. She all but ignored him and turned to shut the door, leaving him and his potential boss in front of him. 

‘Friendly.’

As he walks forward, Bucky mentally notes the older man in front of him seems stressed out of his mind, and maybe even a little annoyed. He isn’t sure if the annoyance was brought on from this interview or by something else entirely. Either way, he was pretty confident that Fury was going to tear him apart just from that look he was giving him alone. Bucky took a deep breath in as he finally reached the broad desk scattered with papers and shook Fury’s hand. The man's grip was firm and sure. 

“Thank you for taking the time to see me, sir. My name is James Barnes,” Bucky said, introducing himself. He was definitely not going to tell him that his friends call him Bucky at that moment in time. Or maybe ever. 

“Good to meet you, James. Have a seat,” Fury states and motioned for him to do so. “So, I see you’re interested in the administrative assistant job here.” 

“Yes, sir. I thought I would be a great fit for it,” Bucky responded in a casual but serious tone. Fury nods and rummages through a manila folder till he found the paper that he was looking for.

“Well I can see here you’ve had your fair share of customer service hell. And sales. Sales is a nice background to have,” Fury notes as he continues to scan the paper that had Bucky's resume printed on it. 

His previous job was working at a small sales company called Valkyrion, and Bucky was their top salesman. He was almost always the performer of the month, unless his good friend Sam took that spot, but he always strived to be the best at his job. It was a start-up business that was trying to compete with major cable companies in the area, which only lasted for the better part of two years before the owners gave up on it. Which is how he ended up jobless. They laid off everyone without much warning and without much care either. So, for about a month or two, Bucky had been searching high and low for a decent paying job. He had enough money put away to cover the bills for a short while and settled on ramen, chicken, and coffee for most of his meals. If that didn’t bring him back to the good old days of college, he didn’t know what did. So, when Bucky got an e-mail back to him saying SHIELD Inc. had accepted his application, he about cried from happiness. 

“Yes, sir. I was top in sales in the company almost every month,” Bucky told Fury. He’s proud of that fact and wants to be the most desirable candidate for this position. Yes, Bucky knew sales has next to nothing to do with this particular job, but hell, it couldn’t hurt to mention. 

Fury opened his mouth to reply, but the ugly corporate phone on his desk interrupted him. He held a finger up to signal he would be just a second. He answers the call without a greeting, and unbelievably, manages to look even more stressed from whatever he was hearing.

“Tell her I’ll be up in five minutes,” Fury said and hung up the boring grey phone. He picks up Bucky's file once more, and after rereading it, he drops it on his desk and looks straight at Bucky. 

“Son, I’m just going to tell you how it is,” Fury said. Here it was. He’s not interested and now he’s going to have to be a dishwasher for the rest of his life. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, but still. 

“We don’t need you to sell things, we just need you to do whatever it is you’re needed here for. Make schedules, answers calls, keep track of things. Can you do that?” 

Bucky nods, “I can definitely keep up with all of that, sir.” Holy fuck. Was he being offered the job? Was it really that quick and simple? His heart began racing and a small smile forms on his lips. 

“Good. Because Rogers can’t keep track of a damn thing,” Fury said. “When’s your available start date?” 

Bucky has a brief second of confusion and furrows his brows. He thought that he was going to be working for Fury. Who the hell is this Rogers guy? But almost as soon as that confusion came, it left. He lit up the room with his smile. He doesn’t care about who he was directly working for, as long as a job was secure under his belt. 

Bucky smiles a toothy grin, “Tomorrow would work perfect for me, sir,” he replies. Fury nods and stands. Bucky stands up along with him and held out his hand for the third time that day, shaking the older man's calloused one. 

“Sounds good to me. Go ahead and come in around 8:30 tomorrow and ask for Natasha. She’ll give you the necessary paperwork for you to fill out. Have her show you around before she takes you to Rogers’ office. You’ll be working for him directly,” Fury told him. Bucky honestly still has no clue who that was, but he’ll be finding out soon enough. 

“Thank you, sir. I appreciate this so much,” Bucky said. Fury sat back down, nods and waves him off. He left Fury’s office with an enthusiastic grin while walking back down the halls. Bucky felt himself beaming with excitement and relief. 

‘I’m going to be okay,’

Tomorrow, he’s starting his new job. Tomorrow, he’s going to meet Steve Rogers.


	2. Little Did I Know

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for everyone that’s read this so far! Next chapter will have much more Steve And Bucky. I just didn’t want it to get too long! Updates will be weekly :)

The next morning, Bucky woke up a whole two hours early to prepare for the day. Staring up at his apartment ceiling, he smiles at how he doesn’t feel the stress that had been consuming him for the past couple weeks. His shoulders are relaxed, his jaw is unclenched, and the hopeful feeling from yesterday is still with him. 

“I’m the fuckin’ best,” He said in a scratchy voice to his empty apartment. 

Bucky grunts as he sits up and tries to rub the sleepiness out of his steel blue eyes. He shuffles to his tiny kitchen area, and turns on his coffee machine to let it do its thing. While waiting for his favorite hot drink to brew, he wanders to the bathroom to relieve himself and freshen up. 

Staring at his tired self in the mirror, Bucky can see his features weren’t in the worried grimace he’d worn only yesterday. God, he’s so happy that he landed this job. After he got home yesterday, he called Sam, and let him know the good news. Of course, Sam wanted to celebrate immediately, but Bucky laughed and pushed it off for the weekend. 

Drying off his hands, he walks back out to the kitchen, pours himself a giant mug of coffee and fills it with caramel creamer. The sweeter the coffee, the better, in Bucky’s opinion. Bucky took his time to get ready for the day. He made sure to style his long, brown hair more thoughtful than usual; sleeking it back with too much gel to ensure it will stay in place. He cries a little on the inside when he decides to shave his facial hair because, god did Bucky appreciate the way scruff made him look. But he wants to look sharp and professional, so goodbye beautiful beard. After what seemed like way too long of a time to decide what outfit to wear, Bucky chose his charcoal grey suit with a white dress shirt and, feeling a little crazy, paired it with a blue tie with red pinstripes. 

Feeling satisfied with his outfit, he looks down at the watch he just fastened on his wrist and frowns. It was only 7:15. Welp, getting up two hours early is officially deemed overkill. Bucky sighs and plops down on his couch, sitting in the well-worn in spot. He pulls his phone out to try to busy himself for at least thirty more minutes. The walk to SHIELD wasn’t too far away, but he would rather leave his apartment around an hour early just to make sure he wouldn’t be late. 

After he spent some time checking emails and watching random cat compilations, Bucky shrugs on his thick wool coat and grabs his keys to lock up. He feels a mixture of nervousness and excitement as he walks out into the chilly morning air of Brooklyn. 

Bucky barely gets a foot out of the crowded elevator doors, stepping into SHIELD with a whole six minutes to spare. He expected the foot traffic getting there to be a bit chaotic, but he didn’t plan for almost an entire block to be closed off due to an accident. Must’ve been pretty bad for them to close so much off. 

For Bucky, six minutes early may as well be ten minutes late. Especially on the first day of a new job. He manages to escape from the clump of men and women from the elevator, that he swears is moving slowly on purpose, and walks to the only familiar face he knew. 

“Good morning, James!” Maria greets him with a pearly smile. 

How she seems so awake is a mystery unbeknownst to him, but he smiles back and immediately feels more comfortable. 

“Good morning, I’m running a bit behind and was supposed to meet Natasha. I’m not exactly sure where though...” Bucky tells her, running a hand through his hair out of nervousness. 

He really should’ve thought to ask that yesterday, but he was just too excited. Bucky left practically bouncing up and down from happiness and apparently, didn’t feel the need to ask any other questions, which definitely came back to bite him in the ass. 

“Oh! Natasha mentioned that when she came in,” she said while skimming through a page of handwritten notes. “She wanted you to see her in Meeting Room Three,” she read from the paper.  
“Ah, okay thank you. Can you point me in the direction that would be?” Bucky asks appreciatively, but still lost. He still has no idea where the hell that room is. Maria nods and turns and points behind her. 

“So, you go through that doorway and keep following the hall. It’s going to be the fourth door on the left and it says Meeting Room Three on the outside of it. If you can’t find it, just let someone around you know, they’ll help you out!” 

While Maria was talking, Bucky accidentally zones out when he notices the most attractive man he’s ever seen. And that’s saying a lot compared to how many men are in the city. He’s lighting up the room with the most breathtaking smile and his laugh sounds like honey. The woman he’s talking to seems to be enjoying the conversation, and damn, Bucky never wishes he was another person more in this moment. He never knew someone could look so damn hot with a beard. Bucky’s eyes widen and he quickly looks away when the gorgeous man’s eyes meet his for a brief moment. 

‘Holy fuck.’ 

“James?” Maria asks. “You still with me?” 

“Y-yeah, sorry. Just the nerves,” He lies with a light chuckle. “You said down the hall, right?” 

“Yep! And listen, don’t be nervous. You’ll do fine.”

“Thank you, I’ll see you later I hope,” Bucky tells her. He gives her a small wave and glances back to look at that beautiful man again, but he is already gone. Bucky looks at his watch and he really hopes Natasha hasn’t been waiting too long. It was only a couple minutes passed eight-thirty, but still, he didn’t want to make a bad impression. He ends up speed walking to find the room. 

He found the door easily enough and knocks before entering. Natasha is sitting with what he assumes, is all the paperwork he has to go over and fill out before actually getting into things. Or, what Bucky thinks, the worst part about a new job. 

“Sorry I'm a bit late, there was a major accident and I had to-” 

“Just read this carefully,” She interrupts. “These are what your daily tasks are going to be. It looks easy on paper, but you can really screw things up if you're not paying attention.” She tells him. 

The packet is about five or so pages long and doesn’t seem too bad just by glancing at it. Although, Natasha is making it seem like its life or death about understanding every single detail on the pages. 

“Fill this out and give it back to us by the end of the day,” she says and hands him tax forms and all the mundane paperwork that goes along with it. “I’m going to be coming in and out for a couple things, but let me know when you’re done reading and if you have any questions. After that I’ll show you around and leave you to it with Rogers.” 

After what felt like the longest hour and a half of his life, Bucky finishes up with the extremely boring packet and places it aside. It honestly didn’t seem like too much work. He’s glad that nowhere in the papers did it say he had to fetch coffee or do random side tasks that he’s seen in some movies. Natasha is already in the room typing on her laptop a couple seats away so Bucky’s happy he didn’t have to wait for her to return. 

“Alright, I think I understand everything. I read over it twice just to be sure,” He says. 

She looks up and stares at him for a couple seconds longer than necessary, and closes her laptop. “Any questions?” 

‘Are you always this friendly?’ Bucky thinks to himself. 

“No, not any that I can think of currently,” He decides to go with. 

“Grab your stuff then, I’ll give you the grand tour,”  
She says as she stands up gracefully. Bucky swears he sees a tiny smile on her lips. 

The grand tour ends up being where the lunch hall and bathroom were. Besides that, she shows him the general area he’s going to be working in. Bucky is still blown away with how SHIELD looks. Everything is so modern and light, but surprisingly comfortable. Everyone looks like they have their shit together but are still friendly. Maybe he can fit in here without faking it. He smiles and follows Natasha, nodding when she points out a handful of places worth mentioning. After the short walk, they end up back in the area Natasha told him he’d be working in. 

“I don’t think Rogers has any meetings going on right now. I would introduce you to him but I’m running behind on more emails than I want to be. His door is the one with his name on it,” She points out. As she’s walking away, she turns back to stare at Bucky. “You’ll be good for him.” 

Bucky thinks about that for a moment as she walks away, wondering if his other assistant was just horrible, or if she was underlining something else. Whatever it is, he pushes it to the back of his mind and finally knocks on the door to his new boss. 

He hears a loud, “Come in!” and opens the door. Bucky practically chokes on his own saliva when he sees that the man from the lobby was standing beside the office desk. He freezes in place, hand still on the doorknob and halfway into the room. 

‘What the fuck.’

Life must be playing a cruel joke on him, there’s no other way that this would happen. There’s no way this overly attractive man is his new boss. 

“Ah, you must be James! I’m Steve, a couple people call me Rogers around here but Steve will do just fine,” he says with a laugh, and with that perfect smile. 

Bucky realizes he hasn’t said anything or even moved when he sees Steve’s smile falter a bit. 

“Bucky. I prefer Bucky actually but it’s up to you I guess.” He doesn’t know why he told Steve his preferred name, maybe just to hear it come out of his mouth. Bucky notices he’s just standing there awkwardly, so he gives Steve a smile and makes his way over. 

“Alright then Bucky, tell me about you,” Steve says.

He opens his mouth to speak but, for some unknown reason, Bucky's mind completely blanks. It’s like his brain decided to erase all memories and interests from his life as he’s standing in front of Steve. He can feel his face turning red as he blushes from the sudden memory loss. 

Steve laughs lightly, “It’s okay, we can get back to that later. I know starting a new job can be a little tough, but I have faith in you.”

All Bucky is thinking of is how much he hates his brain in the moment, and how blue Steves eyes are. How had he not noticed that earlier? How the hell is he going to focus on work when he practically has a Greek god as a boss? 

Bucky laughs to play off his nervousness. “So, is there anything you need me to work on?” He mentally slaps himself. 

‘Smooth, just completely ignore his question and not ask him about anything but work.” 

“Ready to work right off the bat? I like your enthusiasm, Bucky!” He says and playfully grabs Bucky's shoulder. “Actually I do need some emails to get sent out later, but for right now, I’m pretty caught up. Did anyone show you around?” 

Bucky is trying his best to not think of the warm hand on his shoulder and nods his head. “Natasha showed me around some places. Just the places I would need to be.” 

Steve pulled away and fake gasps,” So she didn’t show you the top secret, and much better cafe on the next floor?” His eyebrows forming a small crease from the fake shock. 

“No, she just decided the bathroom was a good idea,” he smiles and bites his bottom lip. Steve's eyes flashed to the movement and back up to Bucky’s eyes before laughing that beautiful laugh. 

“Yeah that sounds like Natasha. I have about, forty-five minutes before my meeting,” he says looking at his watch. “I can show you it if you want, but you have to keep it under lock and key. Don’t want too many others finding out about it.” Steve’s eyes crinkling at the corners as he smiles. 

‘Hot and nice? I’m fucked’

“Please! I’m sure the coffee down here isn’t bad, but if it’s better by any means, lead the way, sir,” Bucky jokes. “And I’ll keep it safe, you don’t have to worry.” 

Steve gives him a crooked grin and motions forward, “After you!” 

Bucky’s heart stammers and he feels like he’s back in high school talking to his crush. He knows not to get his hopes up with Steve though. He didn’t notice a ring on his finger but that by no means makes a man gay or even single for that matter. Even if he wasn’t interested, Steve seems like a genuine person, and Bucky would love to have a friend like that in his life. 

As they walk out of the room, Bucky decides that he’s going to love it here.


	3. Chapter 3: High Hopes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so i totally forgot about this fic... thats partially from my laptop sucking and life. Anyways, heres a short but cute update!!

The café Steve brings Bucky to is like a small slice of heaven. The aroma of expresso hits him before they even enter the tiny room fully. It’s lit with warm lights and there’s hanging plants placed around the interior. There’s only a couple tables spread throughout the place and a small bar for people that want a quick bite to eat. Like most of the places in SHIELD, one full wall is made of glass, and the back is made of red brick. It felt safe and welcoming with the familiar sounds of grinding beans and the clanking of dishes. Most importantly, its nearly empty aside from the staff. In an environment as modern as SHIELD, this place feels so out of place with how homey it looks. It almost feels like Bucky’s downtown in a new coffee shop, not at work. 

Bucky grins to himself, taking in what he decides to deem what will be his ‘spot’ in the building. He looks over to Steve, and notices he’s smiling too. 

“It’s called Sweet Cream Café. It’s been here for about a year or two but, everyone apparently forgot its existence or they just don’t have time to come up. Which is both a shame and a good thing,” Steve explains with a knowing grin. “After you’ve had a drink here, you’re going to wish you had one of these shops in your kitchen.” 

“I don’t know, the stuff I make is pretty outstanding,” Bucky jokes. 

He lights up when Steve laughs at his joke and hears himself joining. It feels natural already joking around with him, even though they only met a couple moments ago. 

“Well, why don’t we put that to the test? Let the coffee settle the battle.” 

They decide to sit at the bar and Steve is already ordering while Bucky looks through the small menu. There’s not a lot, but everything sounds delicious. Bucky sees himself as a bit of a coffee snob when he's not making it in his apartment. If this place is as good as Steve is making it seem, then he’s just going to order a black coffee. He wants to try something new, like the Orange Mocha Swirl with Candied Orange, but he wants to see if their plain coffee is up to par. 

“One black coffee please,” Bucky says to the barista. She nods and turns to grind the beans. 

“With how much you were staring at the menu, I thought that you’d order something besides that,” Steve chuckles. 

“I might after I decide if it’s a worthy contender to what I can make. I just don’t know if they can beat the quality stuff I get at Walgreens.” 

“I’m not saying that’s bad, I’m just saying you may find a replacement for your beloved Walgreens coffee.” Steve points out, eyes crinkling at the corner as he grins. 

Before Bucky can reply, the barista sets a napkin and glass mug in front of him, and pours in the steaming liquid. She slides over a tray with sugars and cream and puts down an iced drink in front of Steve. The smell alone gets Bucky’s mouthwatering and he pursues his lips, knowing he’s lost. To be honest, he knew he lost from the beginning, but it was still fun to go along with it. Bucky picks up the mug and takes the tiniest sip, making it a point to be overly dramatic. 

True to his word, this was the best coffee Bucky has had in a while. It was smooth and rich, with almost no bitterness. The flavor wasn’t overly strong but still has such a robust taste to it. Damn Walgreens Dark Roast to hell. He can see Steve sipping on his own drink, watching him from the corner of his eye, waiting for him to admit defeat. 

Bucky sighs loudly, “Alright, this may be better than what I make.” He takes another sip, bigger this time. “But only by a small margin.” 

“And we have a winner! With how much you’re talkin’ up your coffee, I’m a little curious to know how great it really is,” Steve jokes. He doesn’t seem to notice Bucky almost choke on his drink when he casually mentions it. Bucky clears his throat and begins to reach for the cream and sugar. 

“Well, coffee shop hours at my place are open seven days a week,” he counters, fingers fiddling with the sugar packets. He knows that was definitely an open ended sentence, wide open for interpretation for whatever Steve will take it as. A part of Bucky hopes he’ll pick up what he’s trying to say, but for the majority and his jobs sake, he hopes he’ll take it as friendly banter. This isn't the time, place or person to casually flirt with. Even though he wants to, God does he want to. Steve ends up laughing and takes a sip of his tea, eyeballing Bucky dumping in way too many packs of sugar and creamer. So many it turns his once black coffee into a very light tan color. 

“I can feel your judgement from here...” 

“No, no! Just uh, not sure that counts as coffee anymore Buck,” Steve snickers. A warmth spread through Bucky at the use of the nickname. 

“Okay, Mr. Iced Tea,” he sniffs. 

“Hey, what's wrong with iced tea?” Steve gasps, scooting his beverage further away from Bucky, as if it took personal offense. Bucky shakes his head grinning. The more time he’s with Steve, the more he realizes that he’s seriously screwed. Yeah, he doesn’t know much if anything about him, but he finds himself wanting to. Steve glances down at his watch, sighs quietly and stands up from his seat. 

“As great of a break this has been, my meetings going to start soon. Better head back on down to prepare a bit.” He downs the remainder of his drink and pulls out his wallet. He pays for more than the amount of what his drink would be and after a few seconds of his braincells backfiring, he realizes he’s paying for his drink too. He must've seen Bucky about to protest because he smiles, saying, “Don’t worry about it, my welcoming treat. Plus, next time, you can get the bill.” 

Bucky thanks him way too many times and gives him a bright smile. Not just because this totally felt like some weird date but not a date at the same time, but because Steve wanted to do it again. He wasn’t sure if he does this with everyone but it sure did make him feel fluffy inside. He definitely hasn’t had any of his prior boss’ be this friendly with him on his first day, especially paying for a drink. 

“I’ll see you after, I do need for you to send a couple emails and calls out today. Nat should be downstairs already, and if she hasn’t already, have her set you up with an account for SHIELD. Oh, and you're welcome for showing you the world's best coffee,” He grins walking out of the shop, leaving Bucky with his now lukewarm beverage. Turning back to his drink, he sees the barista giving him a knowing look. He blushes, paranoid that his face was giving off more of what he’s feeling than he wants. After a couple minutes browsing through the menu (totally not picking out what he wants to try next time him and Steve come here) he finishes his drink and thanks her. He heads back downstairs to find Natasha, hoping she’ll be in a more friendly mood after he more abrasive one earlier. Even if it is, Bucky doesn’t think his happy mood can be killed after what Bucky counts as one of the best cups of coffee he’s had in a while.


End file.
